A recent UC Davis study found that as Central Valley residents go about their day, they routinely breathe in pesticides, one of which is banned in California and another whose effects on people are unclear.
The study, which was conducted with the help of Central Valley residents in 2022, found that seven in 31 adults and one in 11 children were exposed to detectable amounts of pesticides, including chlorpyrifos, which was Banned by state in 2020 After research it was found that it was Harmful Neurodevelopmental Effects on Children,
The researchers recruited volunteers to wear backpacks containing air-collection tubes for at least eight hours a day. They found that residents were exposed to five other pesticides, including 1,3-dichloropropene, also known as 1,3-D, a pesticide used to eliminate parasitic insects, at a rate of 20. Banned in more countries, and contains penthiopyrad, a fungicide. Prevents mold and mildew, which has not yet been studied for its effects on mammals, so human effects are unknown.
It concluded that pesticide monitoring should be expanded because personal exposure to residents includes compounds that are not routinely measured in routine monitoring and that pesticides should undergo additional toxicity testing.
“This really highlights the need that we research the health effects of all these different pesticides that are being used because people are being exposed to a range of pesticides,” said UC Davis professor and lead author Deborah. Bennett said. the studyWhich was published on September 10 in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology.
Bennett said she was surprised to see detectable amounts of chlorpyrifos after farmers stopped applying the pesticide. It was commonly used on alfalfa, almonds, citrus fruits, cotton, grapes and walnuts. Before it was banned, more than 900,000 pounds of chlorpyrifos were used in 2017 – more than in any other state. primary manufacturer of pesticides Announced in 2020 That it will stop its production due to low demand.
It could be that a farmer was using his last reserves, Bennett said, or that the individuals tested for chlorpyrifos may have been exposed to products using pesticides at home, but researchers ultimately Were unable to determine the cause.
Leah Bailey, deputy director of communications and outreach for the state Department of Pesticide Regulation, said the agency did not have enough information to independently investigate the findings, but the department continues to enforce the ban on chlorpyrifos and has imposed restrictions on the use of four air purifiers in those areas. Maintains monitoring stations where pesticides are used.
He said a preliminary review of the pesticide levels cited in the study found that they were “well below health screening levels.” Still, Bailey said, such studies complement the department’s work to inform its regulatory efforts.
“Community-focused studies like this are important input to inform our ongoing assessment of pesticides,” Bailey said.
He said the department requires mammalian toxicology data for all pesticide evaluations, including penteopyrid.
Jane Selen, co-director of Californians for Pesticide Reform and co-author of the study, said she was not surprised by the “poisonous soup” of pesticides found through the study.
“There is not adequate monitoring of pesticides in the state,” Selen said.
He recruited volunteers for the study in farmworking communities and found that people were eager to participate because they wanted to know what they were getting, he said. Volunteers were asked to follow their regular day and wear the backpack wherever they go, including the grocery store, work and school. She said pesticide exposure or illness is not reported as often as it is because people fear retribution or being deported, as many farmworkers are in the U.S. undocumented.
While researchers were recruiting volunteers, Tulare County Agriculture Commissioner Tom Tucker issued a warning to farmers to “keep an eye out for people trespassing in gardens and fields” during or shortly after pesticide applications. The advisory asked residents to call Tucker’s office or the county sheriff.
“We are concerned that these individuals may attempt to enter a farm or orchard during or shortly after pesticide spraying to use their air monitoring equipment in an attempt to detect pesticide spraying,” the advisory said. “
The advisory issued on June 22, 2021, cited flyers that demanded volunteers wear backpacks. But the people behind the study never told participants to trespass or go near where pesticides were being applied, Selen said.
The state Environmental Protection Agency and Tucker later issued a joint statement clarifying the advice and describing the study as a project supported by the Air Resources Board and consistent with the Legislature’s intent to support community-led air monitoring .
“The last thing we would do is hurt anyone,” he said. “It was really disappointing and disappointing that (the agricultural community) was endangered by the idea of monitoring air quality in these communities.”
The communities not named in the study were in Kern, Fresno and Tulare counties, which have the highest pesticide use in the state.
